Strawpeople “Love Explodes”

Thanks to NZ On Air, Strawpeople’s very first funded video is now online. On their second album, Strawpeople covered the Ted Brown song “Love Explodes”, with vocals by Stephanie Tauevihi – then a teenaged presenter of youth TV show InFocus.

The video has a simple treatment. Stephanie and Strawpeople Marke Tierney and Paul Casserly sit in a car. Stephanie is in the driver’s seat, while the producers laze in the back. A minute into the video, the Michael Ondaatje poem “Kim, at Half an Inch” is displayed on screen, a few words at a time.

It’s a very stylish video, already showing signs of the video-directing talent that both Tierney and Casserly would later demonstrate with other artists. There’s a slightly odd bit during the bridge with Mark and Paul do slow-motion jumps in front of a selection of green-screened curiosities. The trio also have moments of standing around looking cool.

The video concludes with the trouble leaping around the studio. After spending the past three minutes looking sultry, Stephanie finally gets a few moments to jump around like the teen she is.